Rachel Carlson

where the forest meets the ocean...

and NOW the NEWEST adventure begins...

by the time you read this i will be en route to portland, oregon...as in i got on the road in utah this morning at 6am to head to PDX.  GULP.  this move has been a few months in planning and some of you know, some of you don't know, it's my news to tell and let's get on with it already.

i can finally share that an exciting adventure has been brewing in the background and it's time to take it on.  i will be caretaking for a home in the NE PDX area.  i learned about caretaking through an amazing couple, the caretaking couple that is currently in the house sit that i'm about to take over.  excited beyond words, scared out of my mind (the good kind of fear) yet ready to take the challenge on.  bring it.

the house sit goes through the end of january and hopefully there will be another house sit directly after.  if not, that's okay too.  PDX is soon to be home at any rate.

HUGE thanks to all of you that have supported us in our journeys, protected us, loved and cared for us.  it means SO much right now.

time for the adventure to begin...

cheers,

rachel

i got my SPARK on...boy did i ever.

WOW.

 

 

i will never be able to describe the FULL emotions of what i experienced this past weekend for two days at SPARK No.3.  i'm still in awe of all the hand-made yumminess, attention to detail, treats, creative class instruction by amazing creatives, the list is long.  i will not gush too much about this...i simply want you to know that i was VERY lucky to have been invited to this amazing creative event and artisan market.

THIS girl here, margie romney-aslett made it possible for me to be in the company of amazing people.  people just like me looking for a little *spark* in their lives...WOW.  i am forver grateful, forever changed, forever sparked.  WHEW.  and i can move on to the next challenge with just a little more gumption in my step.  thank you SO much margie!

i saw a lot of old friends and met new friends but this one friend in the foreground there, jen, she is someone that i will remember for a long time.  a new friend that went with me on every class rotation.  we laughed, we cried, we shared...truly a special moment.  she was also lucky to be one of the artisans in the market, go jen, so proud of you. 

and THEN i was so excited to meet and chat with one of my new favorite musicians....mindy gledhill...WOW, that was a treat.  she sang one of my favorite songs.  she's going places already, keep watching her.  thanks for the push mindy to not let anyone decide for me.  i decide for me.  you truly are empowering.

if EVER you get a chance to go to SPARK...DO IT.  i can't speak enough about it to describe what is hard to express.  each person takes from it what they will. i earned my little piece of spark and feel that i will be a better person for it. i hope that one day you can do it too.

thanks for letting me share.

HUGE thanks to the olsen family for taking such good care of me while i was in utah.  your warmth, care and hospitality is immeasurable.  thank you!!

p.s. stay tuned for a monumental post (?), at least to me, tomorrow.

hugs,

rachel

 

it's been a long road...in more ways than one...

welcome to wyoming.

welcome to utah.

i arrived in SLC, Utah on Monday 9:02pm, which is very weird because i left denver at 9:02am.  the road was long and hard to say the least.  i pulled over at the lincoln highway memorial in wyoming due to ice and snow on the ground.  i called to check on the weather ahead, all was clear i just needed to get past elk mountain.  WHEW.  when i crossed over the pass, it was blue skies ahead for the remainder of the day.  which also meant that i was driving INTO the sun, very stressful on the eyes since i had already been fighting vicious winds throughout wyoming.  the kind of winds that could probably break your knee caps if you left your door ajar.  i'm SO happy that tumbleweed does not have blood, guts or feelings.  and all tumbleweed can grow to be very big.  i really tried hard to avoid hitting them on the road.

 

the scenery along the way has been beautiful at least.  which has been helpful for my mind.

 

rest in peace mazy girl.

after arriving at my host house in SLC, i received the call from my house hosts in denver that mazy had passed away that very day at 5:30 pm.  i had just left that morning, kissed her on her head and gave her a big hug.  poor lori and dave, mazy was such a good girl and a great family member.  we had become very close too and had just celebrated a party together:  rachel and mazy's soup spectacular.  thanks to all of you that came and were able to meet her.  they are still working on finding out what happened to her.  it was very unexpected. sad.  yes, the road has been long, hard and very sad. 

thanks for all the support i've recieved along the way, it means so much.

rachel

SLC...Utah bound...

 

*google image*

and the ROAD TRIP begins in 1.5 hours.

let the journey begin....

cheers,

rachel

i left the lone star state with tears in my eyes...

planes, trains and automobiles.  just returned from austin, texas late last night...GULP.  it was a thirteen hour travel day starting at 6am and ending at 7pm.  WHEW. taxi, buses, trains, speed racer car, two planes.  SO TIRED.  no rest for the weary though....today i spent doing laundry, repacking, loading up the car as i get on the road to UTAH tomorrow morning...stay tuned for a blog post about that and another adventure beyond that.  i'm hoping i can have all my blog posts done tonight as i'm not sure how much i will be able to check in from the road.  SO if you're interested in what's going on, this is the place to watch.

 

 

naturally an austin, texas trip means 'FOOD TOUR'.  i was very lucky that i had scheduled lunch dates with a handful of friends while i was there.  austin has grown SO MUCH in the last few years but i made it a point to visit all the usual familiar haunts:  amy's ice-cream, chuy's, thundercloud subs, and some other tex-mex spots.  YUMMY.  huge thanks to all my lovely austin peeps that took me to lunch, miss you already.

OF COURSE i stayed up with my DAILY trail mileage while i was there.  UNTIL two more of my toenails started giving me trouble...OUCH.  i've already lost 'half' of one of my toenails...OY.  i don't want to stop doing mileage because of it yet i might need to take it a little easier.  no more 7+ mile days....OR i will just slow down some.  getting on the trail on a DAILY basis is something i cannot part with.  it clears my head.  it's a great beginning to a day.  it's for me.  just me.

 

and then i headed to the texas capitol.  i've been before but i was in the area and wanted to give it one more visit. 

and THEN on a totally different note, i went over to sit in on OCCUPY AUSTIN.  peaceful demonstrations thankfully.  hoping the message gets across.

 

and then i did an entirely 'touristy' thing that i had not done since i lived there.  i went to visit the might treaty oak.  this oak is 500+ years old.  and while it was vandalized back in the 80's, it still stands majestically so. 

of course i HAD to test out Austin's Capitol MetroRail system.  GENIUS.  when we lived in austin it was on the table, then it was off the table, etc, etc.  FINALLY, the train came.  and while it doesn't run on the weekend just yet, it's a brilliant form of transportation.  i wish more austinites would embrace the rails.  it sure did help me get from cedar park to downtown austin and that is not close.  i saved on gas, mileage both ways AND parking downtown...plus any grief i would have suffered in heavy duty traffic since austin went and grew up on me.  silly austin!

and of course i did work while i was away too.  on the day i took the train into the city, i sat at three different wi-fi cafes throughout the day.  austin is very connected in this way, thank goodness.  and working mobile and on the go is so convenient which ensures that i don't miss out on anything.  the two above pieces graced my view in one of the cafes.  it helps to have pleasant surroundings whilst working.

thanks for letting me share my very quick trip to austin, texas.  HUGE thanks to my buddy that treated me to such a great memory and to all of those that treated me to lunch, dinner, etc.  i sincerely miss you already and so happy that you are in my life.

in a few days is a new post about what's ahead for me.

stay tuned.....

 

cheers,

rachel

 p.s. why tears:  tears because so many things occurred in austin, texas. tears because i know amazing people there. tears because i was a bit nostalgic to return.  tears for love of austin.

 

HELLO Lone Star State

HOWDY Y'ALL!!!

i arrived in austin, texas yesterday.  a very dear friend and former colleague flew me to austin to come 'home' to see friends, etc.  i am very lucky to have such generous and amazing friends. 

i'll be here all week and head back to denver on saturday...time is of the essence.  and lucky me, there is a hiking trail 221 steps from the front door of where i'm staying.  the trail accepts ZERO excuses, not even vacation.  as does freelance.

cheers to a great week ahead!

 

FREELANCE and new adventures.

free·lance/ˈfrēˌlans/

Verb: Earn one's living as a freelance.

Adjective: Working for different companies at different times rather than being permanently employed by one company.

this is key:  notice how that did NOT say FREE.  freelance is not working for FREE. 

okay, now that we have that covered.  that lovely image above comes from the design blog called:  logolitic - check it out when you have a moment.

see how i did 'THAT' - it's okay to promote other's freelance gigs as you work to realize your own potential and decide if freelance is right for you.  you join a community of creatives that wants to aslo share and promote with you too.  it's good etiquette to always give credit where you find your ideas.  share.share.share.

where was i going with that: YES, i've been doing freelance work.  yes, some of it starts out free but get a handle on it FAST and FURIOUS.  as you realize your full potential and self worth you too can lay the groundwork for offering people services that you KNOW is worthy of payment.  stand your ground.  ask for what you believe in.  they know that you ARE worth it and they KNOW that they can't live without the hard work you put into it hence paying you for it.  you'll be creating jobs in no time you never knew you had the potential for.  go, go, GO!!!

HUGE thanks to the companies that are putting their trust in me as of late.  i'm quite lucky to be creating more opportunities along the way as well.

a few that i can currently discuss are:

Ruby Rock-It - Australian company - paper craft designs - Social Media, PR and Blog

Here's our Facebook Page if you'd like to follow:

Ruby Rock-It Facebook

I write on the blog here:

Ruby Rock-It Blog

I'm doing a RR Design Team Call here:

Ruby Rock-It DT call

Scarlet Lime - Mixed media/paper crafts kit club:  Social Media and Blog

Our Facebook Page if you'd like to follow:

Scarlet Lime Facebook Page

We contribute to the blog, have challenges, share inspiration, here:

Scarlet Lime Blog

Visit us on the blog as we are always doing challenges with the monthly kits, sharing inspiration, etc.

More in the works and i will share with you when I can.

 

NEW ADNVENTURES:

caretaker: 

care·tak·erNoun/ˈke(ə)rˌtākər/

1. A person employed to look after a public building or a house in the owner's absence.

the new adventure i'm about to embark on this year.  officially i have done a combination of THREE house/pet sits. 

i first learned of caretaking about two years ago or so (?) from a dear friend that used to live in colorado and NOW lives in portland, oregon. even though i only met her ONCE in person, we became fast friends online via emails, blogs and social media...see how this works.

HUGE thanks to valynne for showing me a new adventure.  she and her sweet Brit are curators of the awesome blog: 

Caretaking Couple

Caretaking Couple Facebook Page

Her Facebook profile if you would like to follow:

Valynne Facebook

She's a witty writer indeed, loves to share drool-worthy photos and GREAT information on caretaking.

is caretaking for you?

my recent house sits have been fun, crazy, adventurous and FULL of learning.  i learned a LOT about plumbing, way more than i ever wanted to know but better in the long run.  i learned how to give our diabetic dog insulin injections.  and i learned that it's okay for a dog to think that she's 'human.  AND when locked out of a house, i DO fit through a doggy door, hanging my head in shame.  HA.

furry little boy KUNG PAO who has a new home now.  we will miss him dearly.

our sweet girl LOMEIN who was recently diagnosed with diabetes.  which in turn allowed me to learn how to give injections.  it was scary but i did it and learned something new and can now offer that task to future dog sits.  this sweet girl is en route to the east coast, i miss her already.  this photo was taken after a recent grooming.  she's smiling, can you feel it?

this is LOMEIN at the dog park, in her best stance:  silly ears.  the wind must have been blowing really hard on this day.  ha!  her ears fly when you walk her, we've dubbed them bat ears.

this is MAZY.  i had the joy of house sitting/dog sitting for this lovely girl 10 days last month and continue to stay with her now in the interim.  she's been a treat to get to know and she's attached to me it seems.  which might make it a little harder when i am gone.

this is MAZY after her recent grooming.  she truly is a diva. MAZY takes supplements with her morning breakfast as well as fruits and veggies with each feeding.  she loves to go on walks and insists on carrying her leash in the first few steps.  she's a rockstar in the neighborhood and passerby are always calling out her name, nevermind the humans that are walking her, MAZY is the star in this neighborhood.

apologies for the many delays.  the freelance gigs are keeping me quite busy.  did i mention that even though you get to pick which day you work your 80 hours a week, that means that you are working 24/7 and on the go.  but that's okay because i did sign up for that and i'm liking it just fine.

more later...